Boundaries

If you are unsure as to where your boundary is or who owns it,
the starting point is always your title deeds. If your house has been built
on a new estate, then it is likely that there will be a reasonable scale plan
showing the garden boundaries. You should always ask your solicitor or conveyancer
for a copy of your boundary plan. A copy of the plan registered at H M Land
Registry can be obtained, although it will only be of a scale of 1 to 1250,
unless there is a plan from the transfer when the land was first sold.

H M Land Registry

For about £8 you can get a copy of your Title Deeds as registered at
HM Land Registry. You can also obtain a copy of anyone else's Title Deeds
for the same amount if they are registered.

All you need to do is to click on www.landreg.gov.uk
and click on the English or Welsh sections. Once in click on "information
about finding out about property ownership " and follow the instructions.
No-one will know that you have obtained a copy of their Title.

Remember the boundaries shown on the Plan are only a general indication of
the boundaries.
If you do not know your Title Number or that of the property you wish to look
at do a Public Index Map search and you will be given the Number or told that
it is not registered.

If you see "T marks" on the plan, then these point
in the direction of the owner who has to maintain the wall, fence or hedge.
(See the diagram below.)

'H' marks indicate a party wall:

If the deeds say nothing, as unfortunately they all too often
do, then in the case of fences with posts or struts on one side, the law presumes
that the owner on that side owns and is responsible for repairing the fence.

In the case of a wall if the deeds say nothing as to its position, it is
likely that the boundary will be immediately on the side of the wall furthest
away from the garden of the owner who put it up. It is presumed that the builder
of the wall will usually take care to build it with its outer face on the
limits of his land taking care not to encroach onto his neighbours garden.

Boundary Dispute

Try to head off lengthy disputes. It is a good idea when you
first move into a house to go upstairs and photograph the boundaries as they
exist at that time. Date the photographs and keep them carefully. Take another
set of photographs each year from the same place and in that way any alterations
can be clearly seen, should a dispute arise. Naturally tact is needed to avoid
upsetting the neighbours who may be suspicious.

Prevention is always better than cure. If you plan to put up a new fence
or wall or plant a new hedge, try to talk to your neighbour about it. In that
way, you will hopefully put his mind at rest.

When putting up a fence, custom dictates that the posts are entirely on your
land and the face of the fence, points to your neighbours. It is worth is
giving up an inch or two of your land to avoid it going onto next door and
creating a dispute. This is especially so since you will need cooperation
to be able to repair the fence from your neighbours land. Ensure it complies
with Planning Regulations – ring them first.

If you are using Larch Lap fencing, where the panels sit between the posts,
then make sure that the entire post is on your side of the boundary and that
the top strip overlaps the lower strip on the fact which point towards your
neighbours.

If you are planting a new hedge, then try to plant it at least 1.2 metres
inside your boundary line. It is then far less likely to encroach onto your
neighbours property. Try to keep it trimmed to no more than 3 metres in height.